Changing Faces – by Brownie and noisemaker
Note: You'll like this one. Disclaimer.
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Benton and Chleo
were curled up together on the couch as a movie played on the TV. Reese was
cvomfortable sleeping upstairs after a long afternoon in the park. The two had
just started getting 'comfortable' when they were
awaken by a short
burst of rapid DINGS from the doorbell.
"Stay
here, I'll get it," Chleo said, getting up from the couch. The small smile
on her face quickly evaporated when she pulled the door open and saw Carla
standing there.
Carla's eyes
narrowed at the site of Chleo. "I"m here to see Peter," she
said, pushing by Chleo.
"Please,
come in," she replied in bitter sarcasm.
"Carla?"
said Peter surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm
here to pick up my son, Peter," she said looking around the room and
taking in the situation. "I see you two are
just getting
comfortable. I'm in a hurry so.."
"You're
early. You're not supposed to be picking him up until tomorrow night."
"Peter,
I''m in a hurry. Can we not, this isn't the situation to discuss this,"
she replied nodding her head in reference to Chleo.
"Alright, alright," Peter said, putting his hands up in resignation, "We'll talk about it when I pick him up on Friday, okay?" He disappeared up the stairs, shaking his head in disgust.
Carla looked
around Chleo's house, the part she could she from the living room at least. She
was taking a mental log of all the
things that could be potentially dangerous to a four year, to save as ammo for
the next time she had and oppertunity to throw it up in Chleo's face. Trying to
be civil with Carla, Chleo decided to start a conversation. "So Carla, how
are things with you?"
"Much
better, now that my son's fingers healed. He's finally stopped having
nightmares about it."
"I'm
sorry Carla, if you hadn't been hitting on my boyfriend I wouldn't have had to
divert my attention for a second."
"So at
least you admit it," said Carla crossing her arms in fornt of her in
satisfaction. "You weren't paying attention to my son and allowed him to
get hurt."
"For a
second," Chleo said bitterly, "Don't tell me you constantly have your
eyes on him."
"He's my
son!" replied Carla raising her voice. "Are you questioning my skills
as his mother? Reese, he can't hear Chleo, I don't know if you noticed that.
You can't tell him 'no' from across the room and expect him to understand you.
He needs to be watched constantly, which you obviously can't handle."
"I said
I was sorry," Chleo said. Carla had somehow gotten directly in front of
her, and now Chleo was looking for an escape. "What else do you want me to
do?"
"STAY
AWAY FROM MY SON!"
"He's
Peter's son also, Carla, and you can't... this isn't about Reese at all, is
it?"
"What
the hell do you mean by that. Of ocurse this is aobut Reese, who the hell else
would the be about?"
"You've
been hanging around Peter a lot lately. I used to never run into you, and now
you show up everywhere."
"I broke
my leg, what was I supposed to do?"
"What? You broke your leg over three months ago. You call him to his apartment and hit on him, but he didn't give in to you did he? And that pisses the hell out of you, doesn't it?"
"You did
not just suggest that I have been hitting on him."
"Hitting
on who?" Peter appeared walking down the stairs, a small bag in hand and
Reese sleeping in his arms.
"It's
not worth it, Peter, " Chleo replied trying to end the now heated
arguement before they woke up Reese.
"No I
think Peter has every right to know what we were tlaking about," replied
Carla trying too drag this out as long as possible. "I mean he is Reese's
father and all."
"Carla,"
jumped in Chleo, "You're just trying to make trouble between me and Peter
aren't you?"
Peter stood
there watching the two women trying to be casual in front of him, but they were
obviously in the middle of a very trying conversation. "Ok, both of you
stop this. Chleo, what were you talking about?"
Chleo took a
quick glance at Carla, noticing the look of hurt when he asked her to explain
the situation. "Carla is still blaming me for the piano incident."
Peter looked
slightly confused, "But that was over three months ago."
"Well I
know that, but some people seem to have trouble moving on," Chleo
responded accusingly
"I would
never dream of such a thing."
"Listen,
can't you two be adult about this?" Benton asked, looking between the two.
"I am
being adult, she isn't" they both said at the same time.
Benton rolled
his eyes, and laid Reese down on the couch. "Obviously, you two aren't.
Either of you." He paused for a moment scracthing his goatee trying to
come up with a simple solution to this problem. "I don't know how this started,
but this ends now. Look you're Reese's mother," he said turning to Carla.
"And you have every right to be upset when Reese was hurt. I know I was.,
but you can't dwell on it. Chleo and I are... we're.." He paused not thinking
of the right word to use in that particular sentence.
"Go on
Peter," Chleo sait patiently. "What are we?"
"Yeah
Peter," added Carla. "What are you?"
Realizing he
had been caught in a small trap, Benton began to rakc his brain trying to find
the best way to make both women happy. "Well, Chleo and I are... well I
can't describe it. But I can tell you this, there is nothing like it between us
any more, if there ever was." He smiled slightly, quite proud of the way
he got himself out of that one. "If you can't accept that
Carla, well then I
don't know what to do."
Carla stood
there shocked at the comments that Peter had jsut made. "Well then
obviously you don't have a clue." With that, she went over to the couch and
picked up Reese, before picking up his bags. She left the house in a huff
realizing that she
had been double-teamed and had no chance of winning.
After she was
gone, Chleo and Peter settled back down on the couch to try to enjoy the rest
of the evening. "You do realize that was pure bullshit don't you?"
asked Chleo jokingly.
"What
was?"
"That
whole 'I can't sdescribe it... you were jsut loking for a way out."
"Maybe"
he said quietly. "Or maybe not," he said pushing her down on the couch.
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